Hearing and Listening Vanishes

The installation “Hearing and Seeing Vanishes” by artists Gundula Schorr and Bernhard Kehrer consists of two parts: the phenomenon of sound is confronted with semantic meaning and with the act of seeing. “YesYesNoNo” contrasts the unequivocal meaning of digital codes with the ambiguity of subtexts in speech. “The Eye Hears the Rain” examines the interaction of acoustic and visual processes in a choreography for eye movements.

YesYesNoNo
Composition for headphones
YesYesNoNo explores the acoustic possibilities of a bit sequence that corresponds to the binary code YesYesNoNo. 1 is interpreted as “yes” by the speaker, 0 as “no”. The word sequence is interpreted by a male and a female voice according to a tonal score. The sound material is organized following musical parameters within the given form of the bit sequence, and the emotional qualities of the semantic content are examined.
Both speech sequences are played simultaneously through headphones. The possibilities of overlaying and mixing both channels (right left) are toyed with, semantic occurrences seem to be interpreted as affirmation or deletion, discourse or standstill. YesYes, YesNo, NoNo, NoYes.

The Eye Hears the Rain
Choreography for 4 monitors and 2 eyes
This piece plays on the possibilities of movement and interaction of 2 filmed eyes on 4 monitors. The monitors function as a stage, the eyes as the actors: 2 video-columns are arranged with 2 monitors each looking in opposite directions (front and back). That way a spatial situation is created which allows the recorded images to move not only within the screens, but also throughout the space between the screens.
The choreography works with the movements of the eye: iris movement, opening and closing the eyelid or blinking, these are parameters of communication between the 2 eyes.
The soundtrack changes from a quiet sound (white noise like falling rain) into the formation of vowels.

This project was realized within the support of fluctuating images for young curators.

Supported by
LBBW, www.siegert.cc and visuarte.